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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 116 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  2. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  3. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  4. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  5. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  6. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  7. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  8. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  9. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  10. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  11. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  12. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  13. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  14. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  15. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  16. When are we going to ________________?
  17. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  18. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  19. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  20. That must've been a ________________.
  21. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  22. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  23. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  24. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. band — a music group
  2. deal — a big deal
  3. rush — hurry
  4. cap — a hat
  5. spring — of water
  6. band — a rubber band
  7. cue — a hint
  8. cap — of ice
  9. rush — to hurry
  10. cap — a lid
  11. squash — the sport
  12. spring — the season
  13. cue — for pool
  14. land — ground
  15. deal — an agreement
  16. land — to come down
  17. cue — a signal
  18. spring — a coil
  19. squash — the vegetable
  20. rush — a thrill
  21. squash — to crush
  22. land — a country
  23. band — a ring
  24. deal — to handle

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com